Yes! I do custom pieces!
It’s a question I get asked a lot - will I knit/crochet something for someone? The answer is, yes; I absolutely take on custom garment and accessory work!
I work with a customer to pick out the pattern (it doesn’t have to be one of my patterns), colour, fiber, and more. Want something in a vegan yarn? Allergic to Wool? Looking for a custom fit? All of these things can happen with a custom-made knit or crochet piece.
An average quote for a small accessory (hats, mitts, etc.) is around $200 CAD, with larger garments and objects like blankets, sweaters, and coats costing more.
“Help! Your work is expensive!”
Yes. Yes it is. It’s entirely hand-made. And the prices may seem high, but, I hate to break it to you, those prices work out to about minimum wage.
Fashion, as an industry, relies on a frightening amount of slave labour, sweatshop labour, and other horribly underpaid peoples in their work and supply lines. And yes, while there is machine knitting, a knitting machine can’t do the complex lace, cables and custom fitting that a hand knitter can do. And crochet -cannot- be done by machine. See a crochet garment in a shop window? Someone made that, likely for as little as a few cents per day.
I push back against this kind of exploitation, both for myself and for others. We -all- deserve a minimum wage.
That said, I do understand that not everyone can afford this - and if affordability is a problem for a commission, I’m happy to break payment into smaller installments - I’ll start work as soon as I've received half the payment, and deliver when full payment is received. Affordability can also be impacted by the choice of fiber, and the thickness of the fiber (thicker fibers knit up faster meaning it takes less time to make!)
How does it work?
Send me an e-mail and let me know what you have in mind. If you have a specific pattern, colour or yarn fiber in mind in mind; let me know that too! This is also a great place to tell me what you -don’t-want, that is, if you’re allergic to wool, don’t want to deal with buttons, or don’t want to hand-wash your finished object.
We’ll work back and forth to choose a yarn, size, and pattern for what you’re looking for. (During this time, please be aware that representing colour 100% accurately on all computer/device screens cannot happen, but I’ll contact you if I find that something looks different in person then on the screen!)
Once we’ve established what you would like, I will work up a quote. This quote can vary wildly, depending on the size of the object, the fiber used (cashmere will be more expensive then acrylic, for example), the fineness of the yarn, the complexity of the fabric, and if I need to purchase any additional tools or equipment. The quote also includes shipping, so where you are in the world also makes a difference.
Once we’ve agreed, I will ask for half of the payment up front before I begin work. This is non-refundable; and is used to purchase the supplies; as all yarn, notions, and findings, are custom purchased for each project. Payment will take place over Paypal, Payhip, or Etsy, depending on where you are in the world (this is due to how various platforms handle sales taxes).
Once the work is done, I will contact you for the remainder of the payment; and then ship the item (or set up a local pick up, if that’s what has been decided).
Please be aware that some of the yarns I may suggest, I may be an affiliate for. This means that if I post the project on social media or work on it during a livestream, (I will discuss how much you wish me to share this commission during the initial conversations) I may get a small commission if someone purchases that yarn.
Other Important Info!
I cannot offer returns on custom orders, as they are made custom. However, should your custom order arrive damaged, or become damaged due to a defect in the yarn, notions, or findings (things like buckles, grommets, beads, etc), contact me and I will arrange to have it repaired or mended.
(Please Note: the above does not apply if you do not obey laundry care instructions! Many of my commission are hand wash or dry clean only, be sure to follow the information on the tag and in the commission discussion! And if you’re unsure of garment care instructions, please, e-mail me before you wash it!)
My studio is a non-smoking home, but, there are two cats (see picture for one of them!), who delight in being yarn cats! Everything is washed before being sent out, but, if you are seriously allergic to cat fur or dander, I am not the artist for you, unfortunately.
I am also open to commissioning full patterns - I can write a custom pattern for you as well as creating a custom accessory or garment. This will be an additional cost; and I will retain full copyright and intellectual property rights to the pattern.
I will not make objects with things like hate speech, nor will I make custom objects using someone else copyrighted content.
Commissioned Items can take anywhere from a few weeks to many months to make (even longer if I’m also writing the pattern!) While I will do my best, I cannot guarantee that something will be done to a deadline.
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© 2021 Sarah Dawn’s Designs
